A warm soup or broth that hits the right notes with the tomato, tamarind & Kerala pepper combination

I wish for snow but alas it’s not to be. How can it be in the tropical region we live in, it is Bangalore, India in case you are wondering. But it is wonderfully cold outside, I wrap my sweater a little tighter around me as I sit on my wooden desk to write this. Winters are for isolation, for hibernation, so that you wake up all ready for the new things the next year. But no New Year’s eve party for this year, both Vivek & I plan to hibernate under blankets, sleep early maybe, catch a good movie , maybe have some whiskey cocktails. And maybe include a good roast and a little soup to our dinner. This is dinner today, its my version of a South Indian ‘Rasam’.

Rasams are typically soups or broths and have many different versions with tomatoes, peppercorns, cumin , garlic and sometimes a combination of everything. I made this version after having many delicious versions over the years; I think this is closest to the one that my friend from college used to make in Bombay, a decade ago, back when we did not cook. She is South Indian and her version did not use any rasam powder , she sieved the broth before we drank it, it was wholesome , a good student version when I couldn’t afford to order in or eat out.

This version has tomatoes, curry leaves and do you know the secret? Its tamarind, this makes it beautifully sour and clashes just perfectly with the white pepper that I got eons ago from Kerala.

This ‘Tomatoes, Tamarind & Pepper Rasam soup’ and some bread , that’s our dinner tonight. Perfect for the winter hibernation, we are in.

Ingredients: Tomatoes, tamarind water, curry leaves,white/black peppercorns, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, garlic,turmeric powder, water, coriander leaves

Method:
1.Dry roast the cumin seeds, peppercorns and coriander seeds until fragrant, add to a blender, add tomatoes & garlic, blend.

2.In a pan, add little oil, add curry leaves, mustard seeds & turmeric & cook , add the blended spice & cook till it sticks to the pan

3.Add the tamarind water, add more water as needed, add salt & let it boil over, sieve & serve